Numb: A Calefaction Companion
by ExploitingReality
Summary: A companion short story to the fic Calefaction, offering Emmett's point of view on occurrences recorded therein. Emmett/Rose Emmett/OC Rated M for adult themes and situations.
1. Dissension

**A/N: Okay, for those of you that have stumbled onto this story randomly, _this is not a stand alone story._ **

*****_PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS A COMPANION SHORT STORY FOR MY FIC 'CALEFACTION'. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ CALEFACTION THE TIME LINE AND EVENTS OF THIS STORY WILL NOT MAKE SENSE***_**

**Okay, now that that's out of the way. For my Calefaction readers, here's the beginning of Numb, my Emmett/Lys companion to Calefaction. **

**I've gotten a ton of reviews showing concern for Rose in Calefaction, and I have to say that I'm pretty surprised. I mean, yes, we do see her gentler side with Bella, but that speaks of nothing to her relationship with Emmett.**

**So here's an inside view of that side plot line. **

**Warning: This story will delve right into mature themes, as I see Emmett as more of a physical person than Eddie or Jas. Also, I miss lemonade. :D**

**These chapters will most likely not be as long as Calefaction's. I'm thinking perhaps 2-5k, as opposed to 6-10. A lot of these events have already occurred and we have a general idea for the plot, this is simply adding another perspective. I will put which chapter of Numb coincides with each chapter of Calefaction at the title of each.**

**Please let me know what you think!**

* * *

Numb

Chapter One

Coincides with Calefaction Chapter 5

Dissension

"No, Rose, I _don't_ want to go to Seattle."

I glanced at the lovely vixen sitting on our bed, watching me with her shrewd eyes and pouty frown. We both knew she was going to get her way, she always did, but I felt I had to at least put up a fight, for the sake of my testicles.

"Emmett, I need a break from the chaos."

"I'm not leaving Bella like this, Rose," I said with a quiet sigh. The verbal tug-of-war could go on for hours if neither of us was willing to relent.

"Like what? She's fine, isn't she?"

I shook my head at the blasé attitude. Had the others noticed that as Bella grew, escaped infancy and childhood to become a gangly mortal teen, Rose had begun to distance herself from the girl?

She was fiercely protective, as we all were, of the human that we'd come to accept as part of our family, but it seemed less and less like Bella had two mothers, as Rose fell back into a sisterly role and Esme resumed full responsibility for her well-being. Sure, mortal danger brought out the maternal instinct in her, but her attitude toward our Bella was fast deteriorating.

I wasn't certain if it was Bella's decision to stay with us eternally, or Rose's literal want of a child, but their relationship had begun to change.

"She's fine for now," I argued plaintively. "Listen, after everything that's happened, I'm just not comfortable leaving her here with Edward. He nearly..."

"But he didn't," she snapped. "We all knew it wasn't a brilliant idea to bring a human child into a house full of vampires, it was only a matter of time before something like this happened."

I'd never been the closest to Carlisle, but in this instance, I felt I needed to defend his actions.

"Rosie, we needed her. How many years can we go, a part of this world, yet undeniably not, without losing touch with our humanity completely? Carlisle made the right choice."

She threw herself back with a frown, letting the subject drop. "C'mon Em, we deserve a little vacation."

I rolled my eyes. "From our busy life of doing nothing? I'm not going. We destroyed Bella's room; we're going to need to replace everything."

"Esme can take care of it, she likes that stuff," Rose sighed.

"No."

The feral gleam of Edward's gaze as he'd smeared Bella's blood on my face still haunted my every waking moment (considering I couldn't sleep, that was pretty much all of them); and the way she'd trembled and cried out in her sleep as I'd held her in the rocking chair was enough to make this decision easy. I couldn't stand the idea of leaving her here.

Rose was off the bed, slinking lithely in behind me without so much as a whisper of sound, within a human heartbeat. She splayed her graceful fingers across my chest, pressing herself against my back. Her lips touched my ear and I bit back a shudder. She knew every single sensitive spot on my body that would cause me to cave.

"Cheating wench," I snarled softly.

The soft breath that accompanied her laughter bathed my cheek.

"You know I like it when you talk dirty," she purred playfully.

I smirked. She did like that, but 'cheating wench' was really just the tip of the rather large obscenity iceberg.

I turned suddenly, grasping the slender curve of her waist just where it began to flow into her hips, pushing her forcefully against the wall and pinning her there. Several of our wedding pictures clattered to the ground, shattering and sending glass spilling over our feet.

A quiet growl rumbled low in her throat and I found myself answering the primal sound.

I raked my teeth none too gently along the skin of her jaw, marveling that something so indestructible could feel so soft. She squirmed lightly, threading her fingers through my hair and holding me close.

I knew what she was doing, knew that for her, this was simply a means to an end, but I couldn't have stopped her even If I'd wanted to. In this aspect, I was a very simple man.

She hitched a single, shapely leg around my waist as I began to tear her shirt away from her body, ignoring

Alice's dismayed sigh as the sound of fragile cloth ripping filled the room.

As I reached for the scrap of emerald silk peeking out of the open fly of her jeans, she pushed me away slightly.

I already knew what was coming.

"Em?" she breathed softly.

I eased my hand into her pants, hoping to distract her. Rubbing my fingertips lightly across the apex of her thighs, my dark eyes met hers. "Yes, Rosie?"

Her lids lowered fractionally, and it seemed to take her a moment to regain her senses. The triumph I felt at her wit-scattering arousal was short lived.

My ministrations faltered slightly when she smiled a saccharine smile and murmured, "We can go to Seattle, can't we?"

She trailed her perfectly manicured nails slowly down my stomach, raking my shirt into tatters, and I groaned. She played the game far better than I did.

I capitulated as her fingers teased just across the waist of my jeans.

"Yes. Yes, of course we can go, baby."

A single shove of her graceful hand sent me sprawling onto the bed and she smirked as she pounced atop me.

As I drove deeply into her sleek body, mindless in the passion she incited, I couldn't help but feel a small pang of self-loathing that I wasn't able to defend myself against her.

The thought, and any others, were obliterated as she screamed my name.

* * *

"How long are you going to be gone?"

Several hours later found me sitting with Bella in Esme's wildflower garden, peering up at the stars. It was a surprisingly clear night and just as I was pointing out Ursa Major, my particularly favorite constellation, Bella had interrupted with her sullen question. I glanced down at her face, her head resting lightly on my shoulder.

"A couple of days or so."

She sighed, her breath warm through the thin fabric of my t-shirt.

"Do you think Edward will get back before you do?"

The very idea made my hackles rise. I tugged my baby sister close, brushing a kiss to the top of her head. "Of course not." Rose could throw a tantrum all she wanted, but we had to be back before Eddie and Jas.

She nodded absently. Her brow was furrowed, and I had a feeling that there was more she wanted to say, but she simply glanced back up at the sky, asking lightly, "So which one is the baby bear?"

Wanting to offer her reassurance, I laughed boisterously, exclaiming "Right here!", before very gently pushing her to the ground and tickling her sides lightly. With Bella I was always conscientious of my strength, of her fragility.

She shrieked with wild giggles, just as she'd done as a child.

I would do anything to protect her. Kill, maim…die.

Sighing quietly as she subsided, gasping, I reiterated silently to myself that we would definitely be returning before Edward.

* * *

I conferred with Alice before our departure. She advised that we had approximately two days to get back if we wanted to beat Edward, but warned that Rose would not be amenable to the idea.

As I thanked her, she performed a graceful exit stage left, while Rosalie appeared at my side.

She looked gorgeous, as she always did, in a crimson sleeveless top and a pair of jeans that hugged every curve of her body.

I hefted her suitcase into the back seat of the Escalade. She wanted to play human this weekend, and though the drive, even with my loose interpretation of the speed limit signs, was several hours longer than it would've taken us to run, I couldn't deny her.

I knew how much she missed her humanity, though the beauty and strength she'd gained as a vampire certainly went a long way toward swaying her feelings toward this life.

"Ready, babe?" she asked with a grin.

In answer, I kissed her bright red lips, holding her exquisite face between my large hands. As I brushed a light kiss to the tip of her nose, she laughed, pulling away.

"Let's get on the road or we'll miss check-in."

She blew a kiss to Bella who was sitting morosely on the front steps, watching our preparations.

I knew, for our sake, that she was trying to be encouraging of our trip, but she just looked plain old miserable.

"Baby Bell, get over here," I commanded.

She pulled a face at the nickname I'd stopped using for her a long time ago. I seemed to recall a very expressive phrase about the inappropriateness of using cheese brands as monikers.

Still, she managed to make her way down the steps without killing herself, and over to me, and I tugged her close for a hug.

When she pulled back, looking up at me, I suggested gently, "Be good, huh?"

The smallest of grins tugged at her lips and she asked, "If I say no, will you stay?"

I gave her a gentle nudge back toward the steps. "Just do it, kiddo. And try not to let those feet do too much damage while I'm gone."

Snickering, she shook her head. "I make no promises. But speaking of damage, when were you thinking of replacing all of my books?"

I heard Rose's quiet sigh of impatience and winked at my Bells. "When I get back, we'll go wherever we need to in order to replace everything, alright?"

She nodded enthusiastically, her expression of worry easing with her wide smile.

"Well, go on, or she's going to leave without you," Bella prompted when I made no move toward the truck.

I chuckled, waving as I hopped into the driver's seat.

* * *

"Maybe we should head home tonight," I suggested, a day and a half later as we lounged in the expensive hotel suite Rose had booked us.

She cracked an eye open, arching a brow. Reclining in the bubbling hot tub, soft curls piled atop her head, smooth ivory skin peeking at me teasingly from the water, she looked like my very own Greek goddess. I only wished that I wasn't so preoccupied with Bella's safety that I couldn't appreciate the sight as fully as it deserved.

"What are you so anxious to get back for?" she purred with a demure grin.

A familiar ache began just below my waist as I watched her arch her back gently, stretching as though it were the most pleasant activity one could engage in.

I glanced at the ceiling, reminding myself silently why it was important for us to get back to the house today.

"Jasper and Edward get home today, and I'd like to be there when they return," I hesitantly admitted.

Her beatific countenance soured with my words.

"Alice, Carlisle and Esme are there. She's fine."

This was not an unfamiliar argument. My protective instincts had rubbed a very raw spot in our relationship over the past seventeen years.

"I'd still like to be there," I asserted quietly, raking a hand through my hair and hazarding a glance at her.

"Well, I'd like to stay," she murmured, her tone dropping to that seductive pitch that meant trouble.

"Rose, I'm serious, we're leaving today."

The soft whisper of water sliding sinuously over flesh forced my eyes to her.

My wife. Of nearly seventy years.

I was constantly struck anew with the absolute perfection of her beauty.

But I'd be lying if I said we got along as well as Carlisle and Esme. There were times when our personalities clashed to such a degree that I wondered how we hadn't occasionally ripped one another limb from limb. Neither of us liked to share control, and when Rosie didn't get her way…Well it wasn't pleasant.

But she was mine. She'd saved me from certain death, granted me life where there was no hope. She was my angel, my world, my everything.

Iridescent droplets clung to her flawless opaline skin, as though reluctant to be parted from the artistry of her body. Every limb was ideally sculpted, every motion agile and captivating. I couldn't imagine anyone holding even a flickering candle to the woman who was approaching me with such predatory, feline grace.

I rose slowly from the opulently upholstered love seat that graced the massive bathroom, watching her with dark eyes. I wanted her. I always wanted her. A steady, burning passion that seemed to never falter.

She wound herself around me, her fingers seeming to be everywhere at once, her lithe body rubbing against me like a kitten seeking affection.

I couldn't help but allow my hands free reign. They skirted lightly over her shoulders, down her arms, ruffling the fine, fair hairs that resided, but no longer grew, there. I circled her wrists, drawing her hands away from me, holding her captive.

She met my gaze, her eyes dark and smoldering.

Holding her by her arms, I led her into the bedroom, my eyes wandering every inch of exposed skin.

She pulled at her hands faintly, demanding release from my grasp, but the makeshift manacles of my fingers only tightened.

She struggled slightly more aggressively at the sudden role reversal, murmuring, "What are you doing?"

I grinned wickedly, suddenly twirling her and pushing her face first against the wall, her hands pinned in one of mine at her back.

She uttered a quiet snarl, "Emmett, you know I don't like when you do this."

I laughed quietly, nipping at her earlobe. Almost immediately her futile efforts ceased. "Don't you?" I whispered, using one foot to ease her legs apart, allowing my free hand to ease up her inner thigh.

A swift inner battle seemed to be waged. She wanted to deny my words, but she certainly didn't want me to stop.

As the backs of my knuckles lightly brushed her aroused flesh she uttered a reluctant moan.

"Say you like it, dear," I whispered, pressing my lips to her shoulder blade.

She grit her teeth, shaking her head vehemently.

I eased a finger into her, and then a second, nipping at her neck and pushing her more firmly against the wall. "Say it."

"I like it!" she gasped, as I touched her in the ways I knew drove her absolutely crazy.

"Mmhmm," the world rumbled from my chest, more growl than anything else. I quickly shed my clothes, scraps of fabric flying through the air, buttons clattering to the floor. God, I wanted her.

Dragging her hands forward, I pushed them against the wall, leaning over her, cradling her smaller frame close to mine.

"Emmett, please!" The frantic entreaty nearly sent me over the edge.

I drove deep into her, a seamless joining that made my eyes roll up. Panting filthy words in her ear, my hand eased down the flat, firm expanse of her stomach, my thumb brushing the tiny bundle of nerves that always made her scream.

As she hovered on the edge, pliant and mindless in my grasp, I murmured against her neck, "We're going home today."

She stiffened, and my fingers move purposefully.

"Today," I grunted, leaning in to bite the back of her neck, as an animal might its mate.

She writhed against me, speaking my name, a one word demand for release.

"Today," I repeated, easing my touch.

"Yes, yes, today! Please!" she gasped, and I uttered a snarl of victory, my hips thrusting forward as release crashed over both of us, wiping all coherent thought away.

* * *

***evil lil grin* Here we go!**

**Please let me know what you think!**


	2. Divination

**A/N: Chapter 2! :D Emmett PoV**

* * *

Numb

Chapter 2

Divination

"Hey, are you coming?"

The silver bell melody of Alice's voice reached me just before her smiling face peered through the open door of the bedroom Rose and I shared. I looked away from the television, not even bothering to reach for the remote to try and hide the fact that I was completely engrossed in a show about spoiled girls and their sixteenth birthday parties. Considering the spot beside me was still warm from Bella, who'd just disappeared with Jasper for an afternoon ride, I figured my masculinity was relatively safe. Besides, I couldn't very well abandon Candace on this important journey that only comes once in a young girl's life. And _maybe_ I was looking forward to the tantrum she was inevitably going to throw when she saw that her parents got her a Lexus instead of a BMW.

Laughing at my obvious preoccupation, Alice hopped up onto the bed beside me.

"Baby blue taffeta, really?" she scoffed disdainfully, glancing at the unnaturally tan mortal on the television who was currently shouting rather furiously about crab cakes. She slid down our fifteen hundred thread count, crimson satin sheets to recline against a mountain of pillows that threatened to swallow her up.

Rosie had picked the bedding.

"You think that's bad? You'd have lost your adorable little head over the hideous silver number she picked out before that. Gold sequins, blue rhinestones...her mother vetoed it, before purchasing it for herself."

Alice chortled.

We fell into companionable silence as we watched Candace's progressively belligerent, and thus progressively amusing, tirade. Ali finally turned to me, wide-eyed, when the screen faded to black and a commercial began.

"So, you're not coming, then?"

I sighed, dragging my hand through my hair. Esme, Rose and Alice were heading up to Vancouver tonight, and though I definitely could've used some sustenance that was not of the herbivore variety, the idea of a few days in the wilderness with Rosie was not particularly appealing.

Don't get me wrong. Normally, watching her wrestling lynx to the ground in her tight little jeans was one of my favorite pastimes. She'd watch me as she sated her thirst, draining the struggling animal, looking unimaginably sexy with tiny rivulets of blood sliding down her lips before she caught them with her tongue.

I shook my head to clear it of those thoughts.

Considering that I'd coerced her into coming home before she was ready, using her own tactics against her, it seemed incredibly unlikely that I'd be getting some Rosie lovin' any time soon. It'd probably be pretty tough to grope her without my hands. I grimaced at the idea of searching the woods for my dismembered limbs.

"I…don't think so Ali, Rosie and I aren't exactly getting along."

She made a face, an interesting cross between a moue and a frown and nodded. "I know." The cheerful façade fell quickly back into place as she wrinkled her nose. "But you know how it is between you two. Break up, make up, right?"

Was she attempting to reassure me or herself?

I pondered the assessment, deciding that it was pretty much correct. For as long as we'd been together, Rosie and I had had a tendency to butt heads. I'd hide her favorite stilettos, she'd disassemble the Hummer. I'd convince some pimply faced human to ask her out, she'd kick me out of bed for a few weeks. It was just how we worked. While it didn't take much to set the two of us off, it usually took even less for us to get over it.

Until recently.

"I don't think so, Ali. This seems..." I searched for the right word, something that would encompass the tightly wound tension that was slowly driving a dissonant spike into the increasingly fragile substance that made up our relationship, threatening to break us. Of course, no such word existed, and I had to settle on, "...different."

She uttered a quiet, defeated sigh, peering up at me with that knowing gaze of hers. How she'd managed to retain the sanity she had after seeing the things she had...it was beyond me. I could barely keep track of the shit in my own life, let alone everyone else's.

"It _is_ different," she whispered, her little sprite voice dejected. "It's not good."

I frowned. Things weren't going well between Rosie and me, no, but the look on Alice's face scared the shit out of me. You didn't wear that expression unless someone died. Or, as I morbidly and quite visually imagined, unless your siblings' marriage was destined to suffer a gruesome fatality.

"How 'not good'?" I asked warily, belatedly casting an ear to the other inhabitants of the house. Carlisle was in his study, undoubtedly able to hear, but never one to interfere unless necessary or we requested his help. Edward was in his room, near-silent. Probably crying or some shit. There really wasn't much to be done about him, considering he'd probably seen the entire fiasco unfold in Alice's mind already. Other than those two, it was just me and Alice. Relieved, I blurted the all-important question. "It's fixable, right?"

She studied her fingernails, painted an elaborate green and blue pattern that identically matched her shirt. "Well, it's possibly fixable," she agreed hesitantly. The following words seemed to be reluctantly dragged from the depths of her conscience, unwillingly admitted, as if it were _she_ dooming my relationship, and not the dysfunction that Rose and I had allowed ourselves to wallow in for years. "Possible, but not probable," she murmured.

The shocking reality of the words was like freezing water solidifying icily in my veins. There were problems, big problems maybe, but not fixable was _not_ acceptable.

I mean, yeah, I'd occasionally considered cheerfully throttling my wife, but I couldn't really imagine my life without her. She was my Rosie.

"What…happens?" I asked, the words sounding raw, my throat having trouble forcing them out.

She shook her head fervently. "Oh no. Nothing is certain, Emmett. I won't act as this catalyst."

"Alice, please. I want to change it. Fix it!"

"This isn't something that you can fix, Emmett."

I stared at her coldly. "You may be able to see the future, Alice Cullen, but you don't know _that_ much about Rose's and my relationship."

She held up her hands, fingers widespread in a peaceful gesture. "I didn't mean that!" she frantically backpedaled. "I just mean it's an outside influence that causes things to…oh geez…You're right! I don't know anything about your relationship; this is a terrible position for you to put me--"

I turned toward her swiftly, my hands closing over her shoulders. "What outside influence?" I demanded, thinking that I would put a swift end to whatever thought it could threaten my love for Rosie.

"I don't…Please, Emmett. I shouldn't have said anything."

"Alice!" I pleaded.

Her eyes were assessing as they moved over my tortured expression. I knew she was going to relent when she released a tiny puff of air that briefly sent her bangs flying skyward.

"There's someone else," she suddenly, hurriedly whispered, as though she couldn't wait to have the foul words out.

I could understand why. For the pain they incited they may as well have cut me right in two.

I shook my head, trying to make heads and tails of what she was saying. Rosie would never…I mean…who could she possibly…

"Rosie finds someone else?" I finally asked.

Alice smiled sadly, reaching up to brush a lock of hair off of my forehead. She shook her head. "No. You do, Emmett."

I could only stare, a statue frozen by shock and disbelief. I was going to find someone else? Someone that appealed to me more than Rosie did? Someone who put up with my shenanigans without going all burning bed on me?

I released Alice slowly, falling back onto the bed.

The grin that finally split my face was so wide I must've looked completely maniacal. The laughter that followed was ear-splitting, and I clutched my sides with the force of it.

Alice was less than amused. "I fail to see the humor in this!" she exclaimed, thoroughly incensed. I thought she might just stomp her little foot.

I tried to reign in my amusement as I realized that she could easily put her foot right through the floorboards, and Rosie would kill me if I let Alice damage our room. Breathless, I smirked up into the suddenly cloudy visage of my clairvoyant sister.

"It's funny 'cause it's crap," I declared.

Comprehending my disbelief, she crossed her arms, brow furrowed. "I _know_ what I _saw_."

"You saw wrong, Ali," I denied. "We have our problems, but there's no one else out there for me but my Rosie."

"Emmett! I saw you with another girl!" Alice's voice was steadily climbing octaves. It was only a matter of time before she hit that note audible only to canines.

Still, I persisted. "Yeah, sure. What'd she look like? Maybe it was Rosie dressed up? You know those games we like to--"

"Well," she hastily interrupted, "I didn't exactly…see what she looked like, actually." At my 'told-you-so' glance she quickly continued, "But it wasn't Rose! I just know!"

I grabbed the remote, turning the volume up just in time to see a shiny silver Lexus pulling up a long, lily-lined driveway. "Uh-huh. Better not keep them waiting. You know how Rosie gets when she's hungry."

Alice stewed for a moment, obviously trying to come up with something to counter my nonchalance. Finally she leapt over me, landing neatly in the doorway. "You'll see, Emmett," she growled, marching down the stairs.

I couldn't help but bemusedly note the similarities as the spoiled young Candace shrieked her disapproval of the automotive purchase and promptly stomped off to her room.

The credits began to roll and I stared at the ceiling.

Alice was nuts.

Rosie and I had eternity and we meant to share it together.

Nothing was going to get in the way of that.

Nothing.

* * *

Carlisle got the call two hours, seventeen minutes, thirteen seconds later.

I'd just flipped to a cheesy, but immensely entertaining dating show, when I heard his phone ring, one of Edward's original piano compositions played by Bella trilling through the house.

He answered as he always did; his tone calm and bordering on disinterest.

"Hello?"

The desperate response was easily heard as a shouted "Carlisle!" came through.

"Jasper?" Carlisle responded in obvious confusion.

I glanced away from the television, standing abruptly without realizing I'd meant to. Jasper was with Bella. Why would he be calling?

It was probably nothing. They were probably just going to be back late, or he'd let her eat pizza, or something small. It had to be something small. It was definitely nothing.

As I silently repeated the rambling mantra, trying to reassure myself, despite the nervous tension that had stolen through me, Jasper shattered my hopes of 'something small' with his distress-laden words.

"Something's wrong with Bella! We were horse back riding, and she said she was feeling dizzy, and now it looks like, maybe she's fainted. I don't know."

I missed whatever Carlisle responded with as I sped out the door and down the stairs, nearly colliding with Edward as we both came to a halt in front of Carlisle's study.

"What's going on?" Edward asked frantically.

"Is she okay?" I interjected.

"What did Jasper do?"

"Make him bring her back!"

Carlisle let us continue for several more seconds, his expression growing mildly agitated (which in Carlisle expressions meant seriously annoyed) before holding up a hand to silence us.

"If she hasn't fallen at all, you should be fine. Bring her home," he ordered into the tiny silver phone, before closing it carefully with a click. Gathering his at-home medical supplies, which probably would have never seen the light of day if not for Bella, he shot Eddie and me a stern glare.

"No questions, right now," he murmured, striding between us, his gaze thoughtful.

Edward and I exchanged a glance, before following, silently, like two recalcitrant children.

Ever since Bella's thoughtless expedition into the woods, I was terrified for her health. Not that I wasn't before, but now…she'd almost died! Died. Died meant gone. Forever. No eternity of laughter with my little sister.

Sometimes I just wished Carlisle would hurry up and change her.

"Emmett," Edward growled in admonishment and I shrugged unapologetically.

"Hey, I lived sixty years without a heart attack. Now I have them just about everyday. I'm over it. Besides, you know what they say about eavesdroppers…"

Edward shot me a sly glance, calling my bluff. "Hm, what _do_ they say about eavesdroppers, Emmett?"

I glanced at him in surprise.

Well, shit. I'd only ever heard the beginning part of the saying…did it even have a specific end?

I scowled at Edward's sudden laughter. "You know…They usually hear shit they don't want to."

Edward smirked as we neared Bella's room, nodding sagely. "I see."

I grinned just a little, giving him a shove, "Fuck you."

He laughed, ducking quickly behind me and pulling my shirt up over my head. I stumbled around blindly, making the same noises I imagined a blind monster might, before Carlisle suddenly poked his head out of Bella's room, frowning.

"Do you two mind?"

I pulled my shirt down, glancing at the floor guiltily.

"Sorry," Edward and I chorused contritely as the gravity of the situation came crashing down once more.

Sighing heavily, I sunk to the floor, resting my head in my hands.

* * *

**A/N: :) I always like hearing what you guys think.**


	3. The Beginning of the End

**A/N: I know, I know, it's not Calefaction update, but I'm just having a tough time with that at the moment. Hopefully this will tide you guys over.**

**Let me know what you think! :)**

**Chapter 3 is a split point of view.**

* * *

Numb

Chapter 3

The Beginning of the End

Coincides with Calefaction: Chapter 13

**Emmett PoV**

She was at it again.

Specifying which 'she' was unnecessary really, because the actions of the Cullen women on the first day of school were as predictable as...

The tides?

The moon cycles?

They were as predictable as the plot lines for the painfully generic 'reality' programs that had somehow been dubbed good television recently.

Alice was downright terrifying. You wouldn't think the little pixie had it in her, what with all the candy sweet smiles she usually tossed around, but once she'd begun channeling the long lost spirit of some diabolical tyrant, honing that power into her fashion fascism, well… I was roughly three times her size and even I ran like a scared school girl. If one enjoyed their limbs intact, and I _was _rather fond of having them attached and fully functional, one simply steered clear of Alice. Poor Edward wasn't so lucky. Sounded like he'd been cornered, as I heard Alice in his room, demanding furiously to know why the length of shoelace beneath the knots on his shoes were longer than one and three eighths inches. Hadn't she explicitly stated one and three eighths?! I didn't doubt for a second that she had.

Bella's breathing had resumed a slumberous cadence, and I imagined that she'd dragged herself back between her sheets. Alice had bodily hauled her out of bed this morning more than an hour earlier than was strictly necessary, and every few minutes, when Alice when to check on her other fashion-retarded wards, she'd sneak back onto her comforter with a blissful sigh. T minus three minutes until Alice treated us all to a furiously shrill shriek fit to bring the house down. I only hoped that Bella resigned herself to her fate before my ears began to bleed.

Esme was curled up in one of the wide leather wing chairs in the living room, alternately laughing and sighing. I didn't need to see her, or even hear the faint ruffling of the pages, to know that she held a photo album in her lap and was slowly flipping through the images that catalogued Bella's life. She got a little worse with each passing year. Morning hugs grew longer and tighter; goodbyes were spoken with less enthusiasm and more melancholy. I couldn't help but wonder how she would cope with Bella's eventual transformation. Perhaps it would be a relief to no longer have to watch our mortal family member grow and essentially die before our very eyes. Personally, I couldn't wait.

And Rose…

Well, Rose was sulking.

I glanced up from the khaki shorts Alice had laid out for me, my eyes lingering on the still perfection of my wife. She looked for all the world like Sleeping Beauty, lying in our bed with her softly tousled blonde locks and smooth porcelain skin. I felt a familiar tightening, low in my stomach as my gaze wandered from the faint pink of her lips, down to the deep blue silk that covered her breasts, which I knew were peaked with the same color.

She stirred, perhaps watching me from beneath the dark sweep of her lashes, stretching slightly, a feline purr rumbling in her chest.

I looked away, clearing my throat as I tugged on the shorts, rebelliously ignoring the green briefs Alice had set out in favor of some roomier boxers with smirking, personified hearts on them.

Rose didn't utter a word, nor did she open her eyes. She hadn't looked at me since the previous night, when I'd told her in no uncertain terms that there was absolutely no sexual service she could perform that would convince me to skip Bella's last two years of school. She'd been less than amused when I'd teasingly relented with a: "Well, there is _one_ thing, but where are we going to get an ice sculpture of Zeus, an antique set of golf clubs and a dozen live gazelles at this hour?"

I mean, come on, hilarious.

As the blue and green polo fell into place (a little more snugly than I'd have chosen it), I made an attempt. It felt like I was the only one doing that these days.

"Rosie, c'mon. What's eight hours when we have forever?"

She responded without looking at me. I couldn't blame her, really. These dimples brought all the girls to the yard.

"And you'll have forever to go to school with Bella, once she's been changed. I don't see why you absolutely have to go these two when I obviously want you to stay with me. But what do I matter, I'm just your _wife_ after all."

She rolled onto her side with an air of finality, but I was far from finished. The jabs didn't even faze me; after seventy years I knew when to take it personally and when to let it go.

Sinking onto the edge of the bed, I reached over to lightly trail a fingertip over her arm. She shrugged me off with a low growl.

"Come with us, baby. It's not too late to get you enrolled. It'll be just like old times."

Her eyes snapped open and she glared over her shoulder at me. If looks could kill Carlisle would already be researching vampire resuscitation.

"Emmett, as I've told you, forty three times now, I don't want to go. What do you not understand about that?"

I shrugged helplessly, hating that she was so upset, but unwilling to relent on this. I shouldn't have to be the one to always compromise.

"Why don't you want to go?"

She sighed, a sound of bitter irritation, and turned to face me once more, her scathing glance causing my own ire to rise. "Really? You really have to ask me that, Emmett? Well let's see here." Her lips formed a snide moue, an ugly expression that had me wondering how I could've been pondering their beauty only a few minutes early. Her long, tapered fingers began moving, and she ticked off her reasons as she spoke them. "Let's see here. Um. Bella's falling over sick every other day with some mystery illness. Add to that her inability to stand on her own two feet, and you have the recipe for some interesting, entirely inconspicuous fun. Edward is acting like a complete fool when it comes to the girl, protecting her one moment and about to drain her the next. Jasper has no control of his bloodlust around the mortals, and you just know how I love worrying that our cover will be blown, following him around like he's a poorly trained puppy."

I arched a brow, hoping to silently remind her that the others, save for Bella, could hear every angrily enunciated word.

She either didn't get the message, or didn't care, because she pushed right on.

"A lot of good Carlisle is when he can't even tell us what's wrong with Bella, and Alice can't see her attacks. I don't want to deal with the sheep (her awful nickname for humans) on top of all of that, alright?! Are those enough reasons for you Emmett? I have more!"

I sighed, raking my hand through my hair and standing slowly. I knew, had always known, that my Rosie was a fundamentally selfish creature. We all were, really. Vampire. Human. But the extent of _her_ self-centeredness was astounding at times.

"You can't blame the others for things they have no control over," I started, ignoring her irritable mutterings. "Do you think that Bella enjoys being ill? That she'd ever wish such a thing upon herself? The poor girl feels the burden of her humanity more than any mortal probably ever has. She hates worrying us."

"Well, she sure is getting a lot of attention lately, isn't she?" Rose suddenly interjected, and I turned an incredulous stare on her.

"Are you kidding me?! I love you, but c'mon Rose. This is Bella, not you we're talking about." She didn't even pretend to look offended. Rosalie loved the spotlight and we all knew it. "To Bella, all attention is unwanted, so don't even try and lay this on her. She hates it and you know it."

Sniffling daintily, Rose shrugged her shoulders.

"As for Edward…Well, yeah, he's a morose, temperamental idiot, but we knew that long before Bella entered our lives."

Her lips tugged upward in a faint smile. I didn't like that expression. I knew it only too well. She had something up her sleeve, most likely, something unpleasant.

"You can't even tell, can you?" she suddenly asked, her tone questioning my intelligence with every syllable.

"Tell what?" I asked, baffled by the query.

She snorted, laughing suddenly. "Nevermind. Please, continue with your feeble defense."

My fists clenched convulsively at her dismissive words. I hated when she got this way. My wife had a tongue that could slice through even the toughest of hides. And I meant that figuratively.

"Well, Jasper is doing well, and you know it."

"Then why are we constantly forced to watch him?!" she demanded. "If his control is so admirable, why must he always be accompanied by the rest of us?"

"He needs support, Rose. Surely you, of all people, can understand that."

She stared coldly at me, her eyes speaking in no uncertain terms that I was not permitted to further bring up the incident in which her carefully controlled grasp of her bloodlust had faltered. Of any of us, minus Edward's lapse, she'd been the most recent to feed on a human.

"The others are doing all they can to ensure that Bella is well and safe. There's only so much they're capable of, even with their abilities."

Silence fell between us at my proclamation, and I couldn't help but feel that she hadn't heard a word I'd said.

"Emmett?" she finally murmured.

I glanced up from rearranging my collar, which Alice insisted I not fold down.

"Hmm?"

"Are you going to stay home with me?"

I felt my control slipping away at an alarming rate.

"No," I grumbled through clenched teeth.

"So…Bella is more important to you than I am?"

If she thought I was falling into that trap, she was nuts. I shook my head.

"You're equally important to me, but in different ways Rose. Please, don't do this."

"If you walk out that door, Emmett, it'll speak volumes for where your true love lies," she whispered, her voice pained. I recognized the contrived tone. I hated it.

Spritzing on exactly three and a half sprays of the cologne Alice had given me for my last birthday, feeling decidedly girly in doing so, I turned to the door.

"Why are you dividing the family into them and us, Rosie?"

In a small fit, she rent the silk sheets clean in two as she sprang to her feet.

"Because you always choose them! You always choose her!"

I laughed quietly, the sound far from amused. "That's enough Rose. We're a family. A single entity. You'd do well to remember that."

As I stepped forward, she reached out and grabbed my arm.

"Don't you dare go, Emmett."

I lightly shrugged her off, closing the door behind me.

* * *

**Lysandra PoV**

I was dreaming.

I didn't know it when I hesitantly walked up the slick gravel path, tiny stones churning and crunching underfoot; unwilling to continue, yet unable to stop myself.

I didn't realize as I tiptoed up the concrete stairs, hardly daring to breathe for the ominous, looming shadows that seemed to be just waiting for an excuse to shroud me in their gloom.

But as I approached the heavy iron door, intricately patterned with blooming roses and delicately crisscrossing thorn-laden vines, as I laid my hands against the cool metal that barred my entrance from a seemingly invisible house, comprehension settled in.

The knowledge was barely enough to contain my urge to turn and run; a notion that I immediately and silently mocked as incredibly foolish. Already the muscles of my legs were tensing, a subtle reminder that despite the current illusion of self-control, I was far from in charge here.

I knew where I was going, and unfortunately, it was not away.

In typical 'me' fashion, I decided it'd be best to do this like a band-aid.

Quick and incredibly painful.

I gave the door a hard shove, eager to get whatever terrors or unwanted revelations that awaited me over and done with.

To my surprise, it didn't budge. Not a single inch. Not even a slight trembling to signify that maybe, just maybe, it was thinking about opening.

Admittedly, upper body strength was not something I'd ever be able to brag about, even if the opportunity presented itself, but surely if I was meant to see what was behind the door, I'd actually be able to open the stupid thing.

I gave another shove, to no avail. I pushed and pulled and jostled and fiddled. I even did that thing that I'd seen in the movies, where I tried to ram the door with my shoulder. Who knew that dream pain could be just as vividly uncomfortable as the real thing?

Rubbing my arm, grumbling, I drew back to stare at the offending barricade. Obviously what little brute force I could actually muster wasn't the answer here.

Closer examination proved that there was no doorknob, nor any locks that I could see.

Gingerly, I ran my hand over the area where there would normally be some type of latch, uttering a pained gasp as one of the steel barbs caught the tip of my finger, rending a tiny tear in the skin. Instinctively, I tried to jerk away, had already pursed my lips to suck on the wound, but I was held fast; as though an iron manacle had wrapped around my wrist, preventing my retreat.

Blood seeped from the cut, staining the dark door in bright streaks of crimson, dripping to the ground with small splashes that were far too loud for the singular drops.

High, tinkling laughter rang out, disembodied, causing the hair at the nape of my neck to rise.

"It's just a dream, it's just a dream, it's just a dream..."

Repeating the mantra, I closed my eyes, hoping that the combination of words and refusal to witness would somehow make it all just go away.

Instead, cool breath bathed my ear and quiet words were trilled,

_The boon requested has been paid._

_To enter costs much more._

_Be sure your mind is wholly made_

'_Fore stepping through the door._

The laughter rang out once more, and I swallowed convulsively, fear and curiosity mingling into a single paralyzing entity as the invisible hand that'd been holding my wrist released its bruising grasp.

My eyes flew wide as a low creak resounded, the door swinging open to reveal a murky corridor. Dark mist swirled threateningly, shadows creeping out of their corners to consume the minimal light. Debris littered the ancient hardwood floors, crack and worn through in some places, covered with moth eaten rugs.

I leaned in, just slightly, the warning of the ethereal voice ringing in my ears. In my peripheral vision I could see what looked to have once been expensive furniture, now in various states of disrepair.

I took a small step back, and my invisible companion uttered a gleeful giggle.

_The endeavor has been undertaken,_

_By the greatest of them all._

_Fleet of foot, go now, awaken,_

_For you are sure to fall._

My spine stiffened slightly at the challenge in that taunting, sing-song voice.

Was I really going to let a decrepit old house that didn't even really exist get the best of me?

I was certain I heard a quiet, swift inhalation as I set foot over the threshold, stepping swiftly into the hungry darkness that awaited.

It claimed me as surely as if I'd always been there, settling firmly, oppressively around me, a tight cocoon that made it difficult to breathe. I reached back blindly, seeking the door, which slammed shut with such finality that I couldn't help but wonder if I'd be waking at all from this dream.

As my eyes adjusted to the dim interior of the building I noticed the small swirls of black vapor that had been loitering, twisting languorously in the dilapidated corridor, sliding slowly toward me.

Panic that I'd managed to hold at bay began to slip free of its reins, unraveling until there was a brief moment where all I could hear was the dull, thundering roar of my own heart as it hammered wildly in my chest.

"L-Leave me alone!" I warned, though I sounded pathetic, even to myself.

Quiet laughter, again feminine, though this time much lower met my admonition.

Cringing back against the cold wall, I felt the sinuous whorls sliding slowly over my arms; the unmistakable feeling of bugs skittering over my skin causing me to shudder.

_Your decision made_

_You come to regret your choice_

_There is no escape_

The words, uttered in a far more threatening tone than that belonging to the specter outside of the building caused a cold knot of fear to settle in the pit of my stomach.

A slither of silken mist against my neck was my only warning, before suddenly one of the tendrils broke free from its brethren, coiling around my throat and squeezing slowly.

I reached up, desperately trying to pull the shadow figure away, but my fingers sliced futilely through the immaterial fog.

It was only a matter of moments before breathing became painful, the tiny, gasping breaths that I managed to squeeze past my tightening airways not nearly enough for my lungs, which burned for air.

"Please!" I gasped, the word little more than a squeak as I fell to my knees.

_Would you escape now_

_At the cost of another_

_Make your decision_

Why was she speaking in riddles?! In fucking haiku riddles?!

Did I want to get out of here?! Hell yes!

At the cost of another? I didn't know…

"What does that mean?!" I begged.

For a moment, there was nothing but white noise as consciousness began to fade.

Until…

_You take what's not yours_

_But it comes willingly_

_Would you escape it?_

_Would you escape it?_

_Send it back into darkness_

_Would you save yourself?_

I fell onto my side on the dusty floor, no longer struggling against the shadows that made it impossible to draw even a single breath.

My blurry mind was still unable to understand. I could save myself, but it would potentially harm someone else? Something else?

It wasn't a risk I was willing to take.

And with the final breath in my laboring lungs, I uttered such. "I won't…" I whispered.

There was a blinding flash of light, and a cry of pain from my invisible tormentor.

The shadows faded, melting away, and I coughed, drawing great gulps of air into my poor lungs.

A pair of strong, cool arms lifted me from the floor, cradling me against a massive chest.

Instantly, a sense of safety, of ease washed over me, and I clung to the figure, my savior, basking in the radiance he emitted.

"Are you alright?" he murmured, and I felt his cold breath lightly bathing my ear.

It was a warning that my instincts picked up on immediately, the cool, dead air, but something bigger, a part of me that made me who I was, had already been touched, influenced by his presence. I needed him, here and now. Forever.

I nodded helplessly, squinting up at him, trying to make out his face.

I could see nothing but that he was smiling.

Leaning in, he placed a chaste kiss to my bruised throat, and I tipped my head to the side, offering the skin there to him.

"You know that we don't have forever?" he murmured into my neck.

I did know that. It was unfortunate, but the decision was out of our hands.

"Yes," I whispered.

I felt him nod slowly. "I love you. No matter how it ends. You know that?"

And somehow, I knew that as well.

"Of course," I murmured.

There was a small kiss pressed directly to the wide, life-sustaining vein that throbbed in the slender column of my throat. He lapped at my skin, and I felt the pressure of his teeth.

"Tell me that you love me," he commanded quietly, just before there was a sudden slice of pain as he bit deeply. His lips and teeth moved in careful tandem, causing the burn to fade slowly as he incited a dark, languid pleasure.

I clung to him as he drank from me, whispering softly over and over that I loved him.

"When the time comes, this will be your reality. Do you understand me?" he murmured, the words spoken clearly and precisely despite the fact that I was certain his lips were covered in my blood.

I nodded, though I didn't understand him, my head feeling incredibly heavy on my shoulders. It lolled back slowly as I relinquished control of my muscles. I was beyond worrying. My angel would take care of me, now.

As a darkness far more permanent than that I'd earlier experienced blurred the edges of my vision, a quiet voice resounded in my mind.

It was a young woman, her words soft-spoken, less musical…more human, than those who had preceded her.

_The fates are set in motion_

_Your story they now mend_

_For you have just established_

_The beginning of the end._


End file.
